Shel_B

There's a salted French butter that I sometimes treat myself to ... wonderful on a fresh Acme or Semifreddi baguette. Thanks for your comment on baking butter. Helpful.

I rarely bake, and when I do it's usually for simple things like quick breads, corn muffins and cornbread, brownies, and dessert loaves, like a pound cake, or popovers and similar items. Once in a while I'll bake some cookies. These recipes pretty much all call for butter, but none of the recipes I've used or come across specify the fat content of the butter. Euro-style butters generally have a greater fat content that stateside spreads. For the type of baking I do, does the fat content of the butter play much of a role? I'm guessing it doesn't, especially in the quantities used for such baked goods, but I'd rather not guess and get some facts or experiences from the bakers here. Also, should I assume that if a recipe is from the US (or Canada, Latin America) the butter that's called for is the lower fat, US-style butter, and if a European recipe it's automatically the higher fat content butter? In what baking situations is the fat content of butter most important? For example, how about brioche or croissants, or biscuits, or when making popovers? Might there be a noticeable difference in the results depending on the butter used? Tangentially, would switching fats from butter to, for example, lard, require any change in the quantity of the fat?

Do you mean the one in Pittsford, Vermont?

That's true. They have a great return policy. Opened or used items will be accepted. No questions asked.

I remembered that the new grading system is a little different using Grade A and Grade A very dark (Which is equivalent, more or less, to Grade B)

Is the new syrup Grade A or Grade A very dark? I've not purchased much maple syrup over the years, but recently found some new uses for it and have been reading comments and reviews. I seems that quite a few folks are not satisfied with the current TJ's offering. Some reviews mentioned that they ended up with Grade A when they thought they were getting the darker grade.

My question as been answered. You're bringing up another issue. Perhaps you're overthinking this. The only use planned is to add some additional starch to pasta water to make some very specific pan sauces for certain pasta dishes that benefit from starchy pasta water. As noted in the discussion, I sometimes make a small amount of pasta (of the type) which doesn't generate sufficient starch to make the sauce to my desired result. For example, DeCecco produces noticeably less starch water than a comparable Benedetto Cavalieri or Ligouri. There's a dried egg pasta that I use that cooks in a short time and produces very little starch. Sometimes I make whole wheat pasta ... poor starch production. Having done a variation of this before, I am not concerned about salt levels. All my pasta is cooked with the same salt level. I just needed to know if the residual water would store well/safely in the fridge/freezer. With that, I have a backup of needed starch water when I need it.

Thanks. I use deli containers for some storage items, and the small ones would work well for this as they stack nicely in the freezer.

Frequently, I cook small batches of pasta and find that a little more starchy water would be helpful for certain sauces.

Is it possible to safely save starchy pasta water, the water left over from cooking pasta? I made some cacio e pepe earlier and the residual water left in the skillet was quit starchy. I can think of several instances where that additional water might be useful. Can it be saved in the fridge or the freezer? Any idea for how long?

Does it have a pineappley-citrusy taste?

I didn't find that firmness to be the case, not even close to what you've experienced.

I didn't find that firmness to be the case, not even close to what you've experienced.

Coincidentally, I found some nice-looking, normal-sized onions at the market yesterday. Like others here, I've been finding only large (grapefruit-sized) onions the past few months, and of poor quality, too.

I've never seen them at the TJ's I frequent. There are a lot of items folks post that they've found at TJ's that we never see in El Cerrito. I sometimes feel like Joe's stepchild. Thanks for the review. For the most part, I've stopped buying fruit at TJ's. The quality just doesn't compare to the other local markets in the area, such as where I found the apples. And in some instances TJ's is more expensive. Thanks for the reminder about oxidation. I totally forgot about that.

I paid a visit to one of Berkeley's food institutions today: Monterey Market. It's a small, long-standing market known primarily for produce, with crowded aisles lined with produce items one might not find elsewhere. Among other things, I wanted some apples for eating out of hand and to use for making apple butter, which I've not made before and which I have but only the vaguest recollection of eating. After thinking about the type of apples to use, I decided on Honeycrisp and either Jazz or Pink Lady. When I got to the apple bins I found something I'd not seen before: WildTwist® apples. They are a hybrid and relatively new to the market. They were developed in 2002 by Regal Fruit International, an apple breeding company based in Washington State. They are a cross between Cripps Pink (Pink Lady) apples, the male parent, and Honeycrisp apples, the female parent. I bought a bunch and tomorrow I'll start experimenting with them, including having one for breakfast. Here's some propaganda, including markets where they can be found: https://www.wildtwistapples.com/ And more detailed information can be found HERE Perhaps you'll share your thoughts about these apples if you've had them.

@blue_dolphin and @liuzhou The recipe writer suggested that cider vinegar could be used as a substitute for the coconut vinegar. Would you agree?

[Host's note: "this product" refers to coconut vinegar, which was named in the topic's title before a topic merge.] There are some recipes I'd like to try that call for this product. I've never used coconut vinegar, in fact, hadn't even heard of it until two days ago. What should I be seeking and what should be avoided with this product. Is coconut vinegar the same thing as coconut aminos? While searching for the vinegar coconut aminos also came up.

Thanks, again. I'll look at the recipe when I return from errands later this morning. If I recall, you have a Vitamix ... Well, I, too, don't have a juicer, but I've been using my Vitamix model 5300 for making juice with excellent results. Apart from the machine, the only thing needed is a method for straining the juice, and this is what I've been using to accomplish that: (eG-friendly Amazon.com link) I've been using the same bag for seven years. It's durable, of a good size, easy to clean, and free of harmful chemicals. Apples are on my list to purchase this morning, and if I can get the kind I want, apple juice will be one of todays projects. Thanks again!

An interesting seder idea ...

@ElsieD ... Thanks for your suggestion of applestroop, something I've not heard of. I dug up a number of recipes and techniques, and feel that I can whip up something satisfactory. Your effort is appreciated. 👍

That's interesting. I did a quick check for recipes and found a few. Seems easy enough to make but it would be nice to compare them with what you come up with. Thanks so much.

Thanks so much for your suggestions and info. I will start with a small batch on the stovetop, and keep it simple for the first batch. The recipe you've linked to seems like it will be a good starting point.

Thanks so much for the link and the translation. For some reason, truly unknown to me, I thought the origins of apple butter were in England. Since I've only had apple butter once, probably about 50 years ago, and never as a glaze of any sort, I really don't know what I'm looking for. However, when I make apple sauce, I like to keep it simple, and never add sugar or flavorings with the sometimes exception of a touch of lemon juice. I'll start simply with a small batch on the stovetop. I don't own a slow cooker, although I understand that the Instant Pot can be used as one. Maybe I'll look into that. Anyway, thanks again.

I lived near Cocolat and was introduced to Medrich's work shortly after she opened her shop, in the mid-late '70s. At one point I think she was offering classes, but in any case, I found myself in her kitchen with two or three others. Without getting into minutia and trivial details, she was weighing ingredients while showing us how to make her by then well known chocolate truffles. Clearly Alice knew the importance of weighing ingredients (at least for her products) and I was stunned not to see weights in the book's recipes. Was the decision hers? The publishers? Just blindly following convention at the time? <shrug>